Sorry
by Infinite Inficio
Summary: [ShikaHina] [She was still irking him, yet he was still staying] Sometimes sorry isn't enough, but he heard more than enough apologies from her by now.


_Finally! A fic (not counting crack ones) I wrote that doesn't concern Sakura!_

_I was supposed to write a ShikaTen for a friend, but it turned into a ShikaHina. Don't ask. But you know, Hinata makes ointments, and Shikamaru's clan owns a deer farm (with medicinal horns). So. Duh._

_**Disclaimer: **Obviously, I don't own Naruto. Do we -still- have to write this?_

_Enjoy, and pardon spelling/grammar mistakes. I couldn't find a beta so I tried my best to find my grammar mistakes (English isn't my native language, in case you didn't know)... so... yeah._

_**Warning:** Um. Nothing really serious. Crack pairing...? Maybe some people won't like my interpretation of some characters, either. Abuse of the word troublesome._

* * *

'I'm so sorry!'

Shikamaru sighed.

'It's no big deal. It's your things that fell out of your bag, anyway.'

'B-but... Sorry... Shikamaru-san...'

He bent down to help pick the various objects scattered on the ground.

Ordinarily, he wouldn't attempt to help unless specifically asked (and dragged) to do it, much less pick things up for them.

But then, she was a woman, and women were troublesome, and he was better off helping them instead of lifting up their troublesomeness level by getting on their nerves (men are meant to help and protect women anyway).

He wasn't really sure how that worked, but then, everyone always said he was a genius, so nobody could care less if he told them and it sounded illogical because it came out of an intelectual person's mouth, anyway.

(To add on to it, he was actually the one who bumped into her, so it was only common gentleman sense.)

Her belongings were exactly as he expected. Though there isn't much, there was a few kunai and shuriken, some sort of womanly book (last time he checked, flower-pressing was womanly), a mission report—

'What mission did you go on?'

She looked down, avoiding his gaze. 'W-we were supposed to track a group of bandits spotted around Fire Country's border... It- it was easy, though... o-our team's specialised in that, and the bandits weren't very tough, anyway.'

'...'

As if trying to force a reply from him, she added, 'Kiba-kun did most of the work...'

'...'

(Like he cared about Kiba.)

She looked up.

'Ointments,' Shikamaru stated, as he examined the container.

Somehow it didn't surprise him as much he thought it would that she, out of all people, would carry ointments around (except maybe on missions, but with the Fifth around assigning at least one medic-nin on each team for dangerous missions, the need to carry medicines and the sorts have reduced).

'Umm... I... I made them...'

'...'

(He wondered whether she was going to start a business if being a shinobi and the heiress of a prestigious clan didn't earn enough money.)

He opened the lid.

'I... I'm not finished with them...'

Then he remembered.

'Naruto said these work well.'

She flushed, and turned her face away, as if ashamed of her very red state.

'Y-You can keep it if you like...'

Shikamaru put it in one of his many pockets. Maybe he should use it later.

'Did he really say that?' she asked hushedly.

'Naruto?'

She nodded timidly.

Shikamaru nodded in return.

'What do you make these for?' he inquired.

Then he realised.

Oh no– she's probably going to get all troublesome either because she will give him too much information enthusiastically or get mad at him for delving in too much into a woman's business.

He was prepared to turn around and run away if one (or both) of the probabilities happened.

(Fortunately, she did neither.)

'Because... because I... I...'

The way she said the (half) sentence was highly troublesome- it was like her voice was echoing off her own voice box.

'I want to be a shinobi... b-but I still want to be able to help people.'

(He didn't really want to try to associate that with making ointments, but didn't press on the matter, and turned to another question.)

'Why don't you become a medic-nin, then?'

She shook her head. 'I'm not suited to be one.'

'...'

They stood in silence for a couple of seconds.

She cleared her throat (as quiet as possible, it seemed), and looked at him (but not in the eye).

'Don't you have somewhere to go, Shikamaru-san?'

'It's troublesome... but I need to go for a compulsory chuunin check-up at the hospital.'

'Oh.'

'...'

She looked like she wanted to look at him expectantly, but hesitated, and refused to stare at his face yet again.

He was beginning to wonder whether a zit or something unexpectedly popped up on his face that she absolutely refused to look at it (not that he'd _care_ if something unpleasant appeared on him, unless it brings too much troublesome attention).

'Do I have something on my face?'

She blushed. 'No! No! I-It's not that... umm... sorry...'

She probably wanted him to say something.

Shikamaru noticed she started tapping her fingers together (her old habit seemed to have rised again).

He sighed, knowing what she wanted him to say (it's only appropriate for a man to be the one asking, anyway).

'Are you going to the hospital, too?' he asked lazily.

She nodded hurriedly.

'I... I have businesses there... So... c-could...'

'Would you like to come along?' he enquired, knowing what she was about to say.

Also knowing what she would've answered, Shikamaru began to walk, and she began to follow.

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Even though they were meant to be walking together, Shikamaru was perfectly fine with her tagging along as he lead the way they both knew she was highly familiar with.

'Shikamaru-san...'

'...'

'The... the check-up... umm...'

'Hm?'

'I-I thought it was held at least a month ago... I... I attended... B-but... if I'm wrong-'

Slightly irked at her unsureness for some reason he could not fathom, Shikamaru interrupted, 'You're right, but it was too troublesome to go because I would rather watch clouds, so they continously sent reminders for me to go to the hospital as soon as possible.'

'Why did you decide to come now?' she asked (probably curious on why he would even bother getting the check-up if he had been too lazy the previous weeks).

'Because Sakura... Haruno Sakura... from our class in the Academy... do you remember? She wrote a personal message saying that I better get to the hospital today or she'll drag my "sorry ass" there and make sure the trip is as painful as possible.'

'Oh...'

It was as if she had been feigning her curiosity because it surfaced so often, and if she did, she was good at it.

'Isn't that a bit unreasonable?' he questioned out of nowhere.

Shikamaru looked back— she nodded, though not clarifying whether she was replying to the first or second (there's that "both" option again) question.

He turned his head to the front again.

'She must be worried about you,' she commented.

Shikamaru shrugged. 'She only said the Fifth was getting annoyed, and being her apprentice, she had the rights to get annoyed at me as well.'

The logic in that was as minute as some of his theories on women, and he could tell the kunoichi behind him was thinking the exact same thing.

'T-that's a pretty silly reason...'

'I _know_. She was only making a phony excuse.'

'Oh... Sorry...'

He stopped, and turned around.

Shikamaru looked at her sharply, yet he was still slouching (ruining the desired effect).

'Geez... it's so troublesome... but... can you stop apologising for things you didn't do?'

'Umm... sorry, I-'

'...'

'Oh... umm...' She looked down, realising her mistake. 'I will.'

'I'm sure you'll be able to.'

'Thank you...'

Shikamaru waited for a while.

(It felt like almost every single thing she did irked him, and if he was being the ordinary him, he would've escaped as quickly as possible, but found himself unable to shoo her off.)

'Come on, let's keep going,' he said.

She was slowing her pace down, making sure to keep the distance between them.

(She was still irking him, and he was still staying.)

'You don't have to walk slowly just so you'll be behind me.'

'O-Okay...' she answered, and ran until she was next to him, then switching to her normal pace.

They continued to walk in silence, until they finally reached the hospital.

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'Name, please?'

'Nara.'

'Nara what?'

'Nara Shikamaru.'

'Your business here would be...?'

'Chuunin check-up.'

'It was held-'

'He missed it,' she replied for him. 'S-so he's getting his check-up now...'

'Well... it was held a long time ago, and no one is available to do it!'

Attempting to be assertive, she replied, 'B-but... How can you be so sure?'

The woman handed a book to her.

'Read it. I'm sure they're all not available.'

'Unavailable... unavailable...' she muttered as she looked through the book.

The woman looked more and more victorious as the word was repeatedly chanted.

'Unavailable.'

The woman held her head high with pride. 'See? There _is_ no one available.'

She looked down, flushed yet again.

'Sorry.'

'Oh- don't worry about it,' the woman replied, 'You wouldn't have any idea about what's happening in the hospital. I only know because I spent the whole day on this desk, reading that book when I have nothing else to do.'

She nodded (with a sad sort of smile plastered on her face) then she walked out of the room.

Shikamaru was sure she said she had businesses in the hospital.

Then why would she walk out of the darn building?

Oh- well, duh. He was being pretty dense for a supposed-genius.

He groaned inwardly. Things were definitely getting too troublesome for his liking.

Without even bothering to excuse himself, he followed her.

Shortly after he exited, Haruno Sakura walked in from another door and approached the woman at the front desk.

'Excuse me, did another kunoichi come here?'

'There were a few... can you describe the one you want to see in more details?'

'Umm... she has dark blue hair... grey eyes... she's about the same age as me.'

'Oh! Is she the shy-looking one?'

'Yes! I was meant to compare her ointments with the ones we have here! Is she still-'

'She just walked out with a young man a while ago!'

Then there was silence.

'Do you want me to-'

'No, it's okay.'

Sakura sighed._ 'I'll just look for her tomorrow, then.'_

'...With a young man?'

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'Hey,' he started, 'you didn't need to walk out.'

'S-Shikamaru-san.'

'...'

'I... I'm so sorry!'

'You didn't do anything wrong...'

'B-but I did this time!' she looked at the ground with such intensity it might as well start to explode. Her hands squeezed each other tightly, as if she was trying break both hands in one shot.

'What?'

'I failed you, Shikamaru-san! I'm so sorry!'

'Uh...'

'I... I said that I won't say sorry for things that I didn't do... b-but... I just did to the-'

'Hey-'

'Now you're going to think I'm some sort of _failure_ like-'

'Listen.'

'Uh...'

She stopped.

'You didn't fail me or anything,' he told. 'I didn't expect you to fully stop in one day.'

'Shikamaru-san...'

'Anyway, saying sorry isn't bad. It's just that you tend to do it too much that it gets a bit... troublesome.'

'I... I see...'

'Don't worry. You'll get there.'

'T-thank you again, Shikamaru-san.'

(She was anything but a woman, he thought. She was troublesome, yes, but it wasn't the kind of troublesomeness he expected from the likes of women.)

'I didn't do anything,' he replied.

She smiled.

'You walked me to the hospital.'

'So I did.'

'B-before... I wasn't in a very good mood...'

'...'

(She wasn't a woman, troublesome as she was.)

'But... after walking with you... I feel happier.'

'...'

'... So... thank you...'

The silence lasted, until Shikamaru's words managed to escape his mouth.

'... You're welcome.'

(She was a girl.)

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'Umm...'

'...'

'The Hyuuga complex is the same way as where you live...'

'Oh,' he commented, feigning uninterest.

'So...'

He would've smiled if it didn't take so much effort.

'Do you have to go through that way, too?'

She nodded, and smiled shyly.

'Would you like to come along?' he asked.

(It's only appropriate for a man to be the one asking)

She didn't say anything, but her eye contact answered enough.

'_Yes, I would.'_


End file.
